ABSTRACT In the midst of immense societal change, this paper examines the complex forces at work in novice Arabic-speaking teachers’ choice of language in English-medium primary classrooms in the United Arab Emirates. Thirty newly-graduated Emirati English language teachers, working in kindergarten or primary government schools in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, participated in a survey that investigated language choice in the classroom. Data was collected using self-reported quantitative and qualitative methods, summarised and analysed. Main findings identified a pragmatic willingness and enthusiasm among participants to use their first language in second language English classrooms not found in previous studies. The researchers also uncovered evidence of an emerging bilingual professional identity that sets participants apart from their monolingual colleagues. Pedagogical implications for language teachers, administrators, teacher trainers, and educational policy-makers are presented and discussed.

中文翻译：

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将小学教师置于现代化的前沿：阿联酋英语教师的语言使用和新兴身份认同

摘要 在巨大的社会变革中，本文考察了阿拉伯联合酋长国初级英语教学的初级阿拉伯语教师选择语言的复杂因素。在阿布扎比酋长国的幼儿园或公立小学工作的 30 名刚毕业的阿联酋英语教师参加了一项调查课堂语言选择的调查。使用自我报告的定量和定性方法收集、汇总和分析数据。主要发现确定了参与者在第二语言英语课堂中使用第一语言的务实意愿和热情，这在以前的研究中没有发现。研究人员还发现了一种新兴的双语专业身份的证据，这使参与者与他们的单语同事区别开来。介绍并讨论了对语言教师、管理人员、教师培训师和教育政策制定者的教学意义。